


TFW ur soulmate

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, Gen, Hunk & Lance (Voltron) Friendship, Lance & Pidge | Katie Holt Friendship, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Trans Character, Trans Lance (Voltron), Trans Male Character, characters in order of apperance, hunk & pidge - Freeform, hunk & pidge friendship, hunk has 2 moms btw, trans shiro
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-12
Updated: 2016-09-12
Packaged: 2018-08-14 12:54:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,314
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8014780
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p><i> Today</i><br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> HUNK HOLY SHIT YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENED TODAY<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> I GOT MY FIRST SOULMARK<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> LOOK AT THIS!<br/><b><i>Edgy my little pony has sent you “IMACREAMING.jpg”</i></b><br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> HUNK IM LITERALY CRYIG. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH I WANTDD A SOULMAKR<br/><b>Edgy my little pony: </b>IDC IF ITS PLATONIC I HAVE 1 IT PS A GOOD DAY<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> wait hunk did u ever have a soul make<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> soulmirk<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> FKUC<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  are u kidding me<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  SOULMARK<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  do j think someone has seek as there SOULMAKR<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  why did that autocorrect<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  oh god but seriously how embarrassing would it be to have shrek as your soulmark<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  hunk, hunk<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  hey now<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b>  you're a rack star<br/><b>Edgy my little pony:</b> rockstar</p>
            </blockquote>





	TFW ur soulmate

**Author's Note:**

> for those wondering this is the soulmark for[ Lance and Hunk!!](https://68.media.tumblr.com/07c223516792108e48de2324e435d673/tumblr_inline_odcktcI3ve1sakwvt_540.png)
> 
> This was meant for hanceomeweek day 3, prompt: soulmates! I have my own soulmate dynamic in this so let me briefly explain. Arms area = platonic soulmates neck/back/thigh area = romantic
> 
> forgive me for any typos. Also if there’s anything you feel like it needs to be corrected, seriously hmu. It’s like not rude at all to ask for some things to be changed since some of the locations i’m not personally familiar with.

Hunk remembered when he was younger of the times his cousins showed off their soulmarks, of how his parents spoke fondly of soulmates past and present, and how by the time he was a young man he would find his soulmate. Later he’d find out there was more than just one type of soulmate when two kids in his class had soulmarks appear on their wrists, matching in position and image, but not in colour. They’d listen in awe as their teacher explained a rather drizzled down concept of soulmarks. The image was the same, and so was the location, but the colours weren’t. They’d learn more about it when they were older.

 

Despite his nice demeanour, Hunk was never sociable with the other kids. He had a few friends who he had common interests, but they were never _friends_. He grew up most of his elementary school days watching from the sidelines, only ever being brought in when they needed extra strength, even if he didn’t like. It’s not to say he didn’t have fun as a kid, but he wished he could have done more. By the time he was in middle school, he had no real social circles to mix in with. Instead he turned to the internet, where he met xXra1nbow-dash42Xx, later known as lanceypants, or just Lance.

 

Being anxious and nervous as he was, he turned to social media for interaction. Even that too over time gave him more and more anxiety than needed, but he made sure to eliminate those causes when he could. He vaguely remembered how he met Lance. He wasn’t sure if it was through shitpost or some other thing, but they began sending each other messages after messages. They’d interact on a daily basis and once the frustration of message limit hit Lance, he had asked for his skype. Hunk wearily agreed, but looking back on it was glad he had made the decision. He became a confider and a confidant with Lance, and vice versa with him. It first was just casual chatting, complaining about the little and the lot, slow confiding in one another. After a year of it, it finally reached ‘call level.’

 

It was during the summer they made their first call. It was the middle of the night, of course. Well the middle of the night for Lance anyway. The night had just begun for Hunk. Time zones apart and all. According to Lance he lived in a tourist town in Florida. Lots of francophones, apparently. Hunk had moved from Hawaii to Cali. It was for work, and they ended staying. Not to say Hunk doesn't remember his small hometown, on the contrary they were on constant flights back and forth for important events.

 

The call was, well it was something. For one, Lance was constantly whispering. He shared a room with his younger sister, the only thing separating them being a makeshift curtain with tiny little glow in the dark stars and rockets ships. He'd come to associate Lance to rocket ships. There were glowing stars, moons and planets littering his cream night sky. Hunk’s room on the other hand was rather lonely in comparison. He might of had a big family, but he himself was an only child, the only company was the family cat, Snowball. Lance snickered at the name. His room was littered with science projects past, projects for future endeavours, the computer he was building. Lance would often think of Hunk when he saw gears and bolts.

 

The call itself was awkward at first, but quickly dissolved into personal interest and personal facts about themselves. They were both around the same age, Lance was enamoured with space and the idea of flying up there one day. Hunk had a want to build, to build things no one else had thought of before. He wanted to help better the world, but he had yet to figure out on the how. It also turned out Hunk was an expert knitter from Snowball’s surprise appearance. Hunk had to admit, Lance gushing over his cat was quite funny.

 

After that calls became a regular occurrence. They’d help each other with homework. Subjects would vary from year to year. Lance was determined on becoming a pilot. He actually studied for the subjects he had more difficulty in and listened to Hunk’s careful explanations. Lance who had more difficulty with the abstract process of optical physics and the practice of kinematic, Hunk made up for it in spades. It was not just Hunk who gave; Lance returned the favours. Lance’s memory for things at times was like a sponge, and languages was one of his strengths. Hunk had taken both Spanish, Latin and French during middle school and high school, and it turned out Lance could speak all three. His reason behind learning Latin was for the constellation names. It was something indeed.

 

It was during a school day like any other that Hunk noticed the mark barely hidden by his fingerless gloves. It was in a mathematics course going over theory he had already learned months ago. He raised an eyebrow peculiarly. This was his first soulmark ever, and it seemed to be of the platonic sort. He pulled off his glove and inspected it closely. It was blue, with a tiny little rocket ship and three gears along the left side. The kids sitting around him must have noticed because after class news spread fast of the development. Some kids tapped his shoulders in congratulations while others mocked behind his back that it was only platonic. Feeling nervousness and humiliation crawled up the back of his neck, he rushed home as soon as the school day ended, careful to avoid any further eye contact.

 

By the time he had gotten home his moms’ had already left for their anniversary supper. Hunk stayed home alone, Snowball being the only thing to keep him company. The small cat nuzzled up beside him, purring, trying to soothe away their human’s anxieties. Hunk fondly patted the old cat. Hunk looked over to his desktop and sighed, maybe Lance was online and in the mood to listen.

 

Hunk booted up the computer, and suddenly the sounds of notifications graced his ears.

 

**_Edgy my little pony: Hunk the Hunk my dude_ **

**_Today_ **

**Edgy my little pony: HUNK HOLY SHIT YOU WILL NOT BELIEVE WHAT HAPPENED TODAY**

**Edgy my little pony: I GOT MY FIRST SOULMARK**

**Edgy my little pony: LOOK AT THIS!**

**_Edgy my little pony has sent you “IMACREAMING.jpg”_ **

**Edgy my little pony: HUNK IM LITERALY CRYIG. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW MUCH I WANTDD A SOULMAKR**

**Edgy my little pony: IDC IF ITS PLATONIC I HAVE 1 IT PS A GOOD DAY**

**Edgy my little pony: wait hunk did u ever have a soul make**

**Edgy my little pony: soulmirk**

**Edgy my little pony: FKUC**

**Edgy my little pony: are u kidding me**

**Edgy my little pony: SOULMARK**

**Edgy my little pony: do j think someone has seek as there SOULMAKR**

**Edgy my little pony: why did that autocorrect**

**Edgy my little pony: oh god but seriously how embarrassing would it be to have shrek as your soulmark**

**Edgy my little pony: hunk, hunk**

**Edgy my little pony: hey now**

**Edgy my little pony: you're a rack star**

**Edgy my little pony: rockstar**

 

The image finished downloading, and in differential yellow he saw familiarity. On his right hand, it was obviously his right hand, at the same location Hunk had his, rested the familiar soulmark. Despite his knowing of the facts, he still found himself in disbelief. Of all people to be a soulmate, even if platonic in nature, it was Lance. Lance who started off as nothing more than an internet friend turned best friend. If he told 13 year old Hunk of the developments he had had, he would've never believed it. He smiled fondly at the soulmark on his friends right hand. He pulled out his phone and snapped a quick shot for Lance before sending it to him. There was an immediate response.

 

**_Hunkules has sent “IMG_521.jpg”_ **

**Edgy my little pony: Bro,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,**

**Edgy my little pony: :’)**

**Edgy my little pony: iT WOULD BE MY HONOR TO TALE YOUR HAND IN PLATONIC MARRIAGE**

**Hunkules: a true bromance**

**Edgy my little pony: bro,,,,,,,,, <3**

**Hunkules: <3**

 

Hunk sighed as he leaned onto his desk. He smiled to the computer screen as he saw the chat bubble light up. Lance was typing away at rapid fire speed, like usual.

 

**Edgy my little pony: btw how was school :0???**

 

Hunk grimaced as he remembered the day.

 

**Hunkules: it was okay**

**Edgy my little pony: oh no**

**Hunkules: ?**

**Edgy my little pony: who's the little shit I'm gonna have to beat up**

**Hunkules: Lance no**

**Edgy my little pony: finnnnnneeeeeeeeeeeeeee.**

 

A minute passed before the next message showed up on screen.

 

**Edgy my little pony: do you wanna talk about it?**

 

Hunk thought it over as his fingers hover over the keyboard, edging from the keys, debating to confide or not to confide. In the end he decided to be vague.

 

**Hunkules: just some teens being teens**

**Edgy my little pony: that's the worst kind of teen**

**Hunkules: but really I'm fine**

 

The typing icon hovered in and out of life for a solid two minutes. With baited breath Hunk awaited the paragraph of worried fretting Lance was going to give him, but when the moment of truth arrived, it was nothing more than a simple one liner.

 

**Edgy my little pony: are you sure?**

 

Hunk smiled.

 

**Hunkules: I'm sure.**

 

High school was coming to an end and it was time to send out applications for colleges or universities, or in Lance’s case, the Galaxy Garrison.

 

“Come on Hunk, at least send the application and if you do get chosen turn them down.” Lance’s voice crackled through his old speakers. It was a cold rainy day. Well as cold as it could get in Cali. According to Lance it had snowed last night. _Snowed. Such a blasphemous act._ Melodramatics were always welcomed for comedic value.

 

“I don't know Lance. A lot of schools have contacted me for a possibility of scholarships. I even have some interviews set up already. Places like MIT, Stanford and Caltech.” Lance’s lip quivered. Oh no. “Lance.” His eyes worked tears of magic. Hunk let out a frustrated groan.

 

“I applied for scholarships to Yale, Princeton and Cornell in astrophysics like you told me. Just try it? Wouldn't it be cool if we got to go to the same school? Plus they have lots of neat things that are completely terrestrial based. Motion sickness won't even be a problem for you!” Notifications resounded in the chat. They were links to the engineering specialization of the program. The Galaxy Garrison was entirely space oriented with specializations. Space or terrestrial oriented, hands on or in the labs. The options varied. It was no wonder Lance had been so obsessed with going. Not to mention his all time hero, youngest pilot of all time, Takashi Shirogane had gone there, or was currently still going. Hunk wasn’t too informed on the pilot like Lance was. A thought arose.

 

“By the way, any news on the Kerberos mission?” Lance shook his head, dismayed.

 

“With the calculations made, they should have arrived on Pluto’s moon by now, but the Garrison hasn't released any information on a safe landing or not. I mean, I'm not worried since it’s Shirogane who’s flying the ship.” Hunk nodded his head in agreement. Takashi Shirogane was a huge motivation for Lance to join the Galaxy Garrison, not just because Shirogane was the youngest pilot ever, he was the first youngest trans pilot ever. It gave a huge sense of pride to Lance that he too could accomplish something.

 

“I’d give it another month or so before panicking.” Lance clicked his tongue, and bit at it, a nervous habit. “They'll be fine Lance.” Lance nodded his head. “I'll send in the application if it makes you feel better.” Lance sent him a huge grin.

 

“Much, thank you.” Hunk mumbled an ‘um uh’ under his breath before stifling laughter.

 

During a late night broadcast it would later be released the crew of the Kerberos mission was lost and presumed dead. The reason: pilot error. Lance’s heart almost fell out of his chest when he heard the news and it took counselling from not just his parents to cheer his mood, but Hunk and his moms too. Lance couldn't believe it. Despite rolling over with the sheep, deep in his heart he knew it couldn't have been pilot error. Despite that, he still had even stronger determination to join the Garrison.

 

For Hunk, the interviews had gone horribly. One after another he saw opportunities crumble before his eyes, wrong time, wrong date, wrong location, to much stuttering, not enough heart, grades weren’t good enough (despite his over 4.0 GPA) and any other excuse. His mom rubbed his back soothingly, singing him soft tunes from his childhood while his mama got something special for them to eat.

 

“It's not your fault. They don't know what they're missing out on.” His mom squeezed his shoulder supportively and wiped away the tears still clinging at his eyes. She looked down to the ribbon wrapped around her neck. An idea flashed before her eyes. She smiled as she gingerly removed the ribbon and tied it around his head. She took his head in her hands and kissed his forehead reassuringly. “You're the Greatest Genius I’ve ever met, and that's saying something since I work in STEM. MIT won't know what they're missing out on.” Hunk sniffled as he gingerly touched the ribbon around his head.

 

“You…you mean it?”

 

“Um hmm. And every Great Genius needs to have their trademark.” She grinned as she took his hands in hers. She remembered when they had been so small, so curious to touch all he could have gotten his hands upon and now they were large and calloused with hard labour, kind and caring. “You might have had the gloves, but the ribbon will set you apart. Remember, me and mama love you so much. You're amazing no matter what others say and if you put your mind to it, you'll succeed. There will be a school that will take you, you don't need the name, you can do well. We believe in you.” She encouraged, staring into his eyes. Hunk nodded his head meekly.

 

“Thanks, Mom.” She smiled fondly and took him into a hug. He sniffled once more, trying to avoid getting his mom’s shirt messy with snot. She on the other hand did not care. As long as she was able to calm him down, help ease his nerves and feelings of uselessness, she did not care.

 

The sound of the door opening and closing echoed throughout the hall, the smell of warm goodness filling the air. It wasn't anything fancy. Crappy takeout from the local burger place. The sushi place was too crowded, Hunk’s mama said.

 

“Oh, Hunkie, you got a letter.” She sounded surprised. “We're you expecting anything from anyone?”

 

“No, Lance said he mailed my birthday card yesterday.” His mama made a ‘huh’ noise. She put down the food and she flipped the letter, attempting to find its location of origin.

 

She pulled out her glasses, trying to see if she could find the smallest hint of an address. “It says here, _Galaxy Garrison, Nevada._ ” She raised an eyebrow confused and rested her glasses above her head. “I thought you had motion sickness.” Hunk sighed as his mom looked to him with a curious expression. His mouth contorted into a wavering frown.

 

“Lance convinced me to apply after I convinced him to apply for astrophysics scholarships. Let's just get the rejection over with.” Hunk’s mama handed him the letter with a disapproving look.

 

“Don't be so hard on yourself.”

 

Hunk gracefully took the letter, and with dejection he opened it. He sighed as he unfolded it. With mono-tonality matching that of Spock from the animated series, he read the letter aloud. As the reading furthered and furthered, his mouth began to hang. His mothers were oozing glee.

 

He had been accepted into the Garrison. Where all else failed, they had picked him up and offered him opportunities of a lifetime. He was one of the few scholarship kids. His domain would be engineering and they were expecting a lot out of him, despite lower than average gym scores (which were entirely not his fault. He was healthy, he just wasn't a _runner_ , which was what his school had been so hung up on.)

 

“Told you you could do it.” His mom smiled fondly while his mama took him into a strong loving hug. It might have not been the expected of choice, but they were willing to travel this distance for Hunk.

 

The letter was tossed aside, forgotten for the evening with joyous laughter and happy melodies. He slept fondly, the ribbon by his bedside, Snowball nuzzled by his feet which they seemed to love to nip at.

 

High school came to an end and he found himself graduating with honours. Giving one of the many speeches that riddled the graduation. It was long, as any graduation generally was, but his entire family flew out just to see them, and see him they did. Aunties and Uncles from places far and few between, from Hawaii to the Philippines, from Germany to Morocco. It was a mix of colour and floral, and Hunk couldn't help the butterflies of excitement in his stomach.

 

And the aftermath was loud, and there was so much food, so much singing and dancing and pictures taken, sloppy kisses on the cheeks and the family gossip. Switching between languages mid sentence, translating for others, hugs and tears. He hadn't felt so alive, yet so tired in a long time. When the young ones were getting tired, Hunk thought it was time to hit the hay as well. Wishing everyone goodnight, he lollygagged up to the guest room he had given up his room for. The grinding of the stairs aided not the moonlight atmosphere, the light passing through showing every sparkling speck of dust glistening in the light. He turned back down to the faded laughs and the hollow light. He moved forward towards the room, pitch black save the light filtering through the blinds.

 

He pulled off his formal wear, pulling out his phone and placing it on the night stand, making sure to turn it right side out and in the laundry basket set up in the corner and pulled on the fresh clean clothes laid out on the bed. He tucked himself into the covers and reached for his phone. Turning it on, he noticed notifications after notifications. He raised an eyebrow. Some of it was spam mail, but there was a voice mail. He looked up the caller id; it was long distance. He went into his voicemail and allowed the message to play.

 

“ _Uh, hey…Lance here. Just wanted to wish you congratulations on graduations._ ” There was a snort. Hunk rolled his eyes, just Lance laughing at his own terrible puns again. “ _Anyway hope you have a fun summer in … Morocco this year right? That sounds so awesome dude! I'm like super jealous._ ” There was yelling in Spanish echoing in the distance. “ _Shit I gotta go. I'm probably gonna be unreachable for a while. I'm gonna try my best to talk to you when I can, no promises though._ ” More angry Spanish. “ _I gotta go or I'm gonna miss my flight. See you soon bromeo._ ” The call hung up after that. Hunk looked to his phone curiously. The call was placed at 3:30pm. He would have still been at his graduation at the time.

 

He scrolled from his notifications. The last message was at 6:10pm.

 

**Edgy my little pony: wooo planes about to takeoff. 20 bucks says this rust bucket is gonna collapse in mid air.**

**Edgy my little pony: just arrived at the airport. Good news: we're still alive. Bad news: that death trap of a plane is alive. My flight instructors would have died in there. Sometimes I wonder if God is real when shit like this happens.**

**Edgy my little pony: also guess who got 20 bucks**

**Edgy my little pony: this guy right here**

**Edgy my little pony: we had turbulence and the plane began to lose altitude. It counted as a collapse and my sister gave me 20 bucks.**

**Edgy my little pony: tbh I'm just surprised she gave me 20 bucks**

**_Edgy my little pony has sent you “IMG_579.jpg”_ **

 

Hunk rolled his eyes as he opened the photo.

 

**Hunkules: thanks. My entire family was there, it was fun. Um hm, heading to Morocco on a returning flight with them, I haven't been there in years. I'll make sure to take lots of pictures to show you later. Good night <3**

 

Hunk exhaled as he placed his phone on the nightstand and looked up to the off white ceiling. His eyes began to blink slower and slower, the room becoming nothing more then dark static before one final puff of air took him away to dreamless sleep. Exhausted sleep. Sleeping away some of the excess emotions from days, weeks and months past.

 

The message Hunk had sent Lance would be the last of the summer. A few days later he had packed his bags and would be heading off on a flight with his family from his mom’s side. It was probably a good thing Hunk took French in High school and got that extra tutoring. His cousins were able to translate for his aunties and uncles who weren't as fluent and for him too.

 

The plain ride was long, but time seemed so short around the one he loved. The stay was fun too. Rich warm smells clinging to his nose. Loud sounds, laughter and fun, participating in prayer, trying to teach him the local vernacular, which, with the constant practice, he could catch onto quickly. Warm days, simmering days. Being brought to the tourist district on few occasions said for treats. It all seemed like so much of blur, by the time he had to leave, he wished his red string of fate was so much longer. Summer was coming to an end and he would have to say his goodbyes.

 

The night before departure, they sat around telling each other stories. When one of the younger kids asked curiously about soulmarks when one auntie had brought it up, those who had acquired soulmarks over the years began going on grand stories of lovers and friends past, of the one-sided marks and the bonds forged through pain. They told of friends turned lovers and fires burning for eternity losing their spark. And suddenly eyes were on him.

 

“Hunk Hunk, tell us about yours! You have one right?” One of the kids asked excitedly.

 

“I bet you it's someone pretty and kind that makes him smile and laugh.” Hunk smiled awkwardly, but his thoughts turned to Lance. It was an apt description of his best friend. He made him laugh and made him smile. Their friendship forged at their mutual worst.

 

“So, do you have one?” Another one asked impatiently, earning him a stone cold glare from his mother. Hunk laughed anxiously. He starred down to his hand and with nervous jitters, to scared to abstain as to not seem rude. He removed the fingerless glove around his right hand, the familiar blue symbol coming to life. Some of the elders nodded sagely, while the kids oohed and awed as the rocket ship and gears.

 

“Who is she? Is she pretty?” One of the younger kids who didn't know the difference between the placement of soulmarks just yet. Some of the teens rolled their eyes with fond smiles, while one was kind enough to explain to the young child. Their eyes widened and their mouth formed an ‘o’ in apprehension. Despite it all, they asked again. “Are they pretty?” Hunk muffled a few chuckles at the thought of Lance hearing his little cousin pseudo-complement the pilot in training. Hunk nodded.

 

“He's pretty nice.” He braved on in the Arabic vernacular, unfamiliar to his tongue, heavily accented, but encouraging faces cheered him on. The kids nodded eagerly with the findings.

 

“What's his name?” Another one piped in curiously. Eager to hear more. Hunk stared at all of the eyes on him, his hands trembling in nervousness. He clenched them tightly around his knees and took a breath. He smiled to the kids, fondness pulling at his lips when he thought of his friend.

 

“Lance.”

 

One of his older cousins must of taken note of his anxieties and quickly moved attention away from him to them. He let out a sigh he had not known he had been holding in, sending thanking eyes to his cousin, who made nothing of it. The night ended on a ready note which was picked up again the next day, the day of their departure.

 

With tearful eyes they hugged away the sadness that lingered in their hearts, exhaling promises of phone calls, texts and emails, to keep contact and help Hunk practice Moroccan Arabic -- darija he was told it was called -- , to do this once more, to maybe have them stay over at their place in California instead. The mere thought made Hunk’s moms look to each other nervously. Such a large family in their tiny tiny house for an extend period of time was going to be brutal. At the airport they wished Hunk luck with school, for the best and for him to succeed. He cried the entire ride there, through all of the goodbyes and the embarkment onto the plane. As the engine roared, tears swelled in his eyes as he waved goodbye to the small town of fond memories.

 

By the time he got back he was already destined to leave for Nevada. For his new academy life. The tears once more found refuge in the seemingly empty home only filled by 3. He said goodbye once more to Snowball after their long awaited return. She cooed sadly, but there was nothing to be done. His mothers took him into long hugs, only to linger, leaving warm tingling to the touch, as if this was the last he would ever see of them again. And that would have been the case in a year from now.

 

The first day of academy life could have been classified as lackluster, if it had not been for the opening ceremony where they grouped all of the scholarship students upon the stage. Some students, he noticed, already knew the layout like the back of their hands. One of the other scholarship kids he had bumped into earlier told him it was probably because they had attended the non-obligatory pre-garrison ‘academies’. Such ‘academies’ were located within different, yet separated and connected, wings of the school. Including, but not limited to, communications, navigations, engineering and flight.

 

Some of the scholarship kids had, in fact, studied at those ‘academies’ beforehand. Others, like Hunk, had not. The small room they had been herded into began to fill up to the brim surely, but slowly. All of the kids were returning from summer break, and those who had been to those ‘academies’ beforehand were surely catching up with old friends. Hunk sighed, he guessed it would be even more difficult to make friends if he had to break into already formed cliques. He fidgeted anxiously with the gloves on his hands, still not yet removed. Frustrated with that single occupation he instead moved onto tightening his ribbon hoping the added pressure would aid him in a last ditch resort to calm down.

 

No effect was concluded from this hypothesis. Conclusion? A placebo.

 

He felt himself edge closer into the corners of the room as the voice rose and dropped like coursing water. The amount of unknown people was starting to make the alarms cry off in his head. His extroversion be damned. He breathed in and out, trying to calm down his beating heart. He was regretting accepting the Garrison’s offer now, but he only had the Garrison to go.

 

“Holy smokes… Dude, Hunk!” Hunk looked up when his name was called. The sea of scholarships began to part, and shining brightly like god himself was the ever cheerful best friend of his. At that point in time Hunk remembered he had forgotten to tell Lance he had been accepted into the Garrison. Hunk’s spirits lifted at the familiar face and immediately brought his friend into a bone crushing hug. There was an obvious pained grimace in his face, and with a bashful demeanour he put his friend down.

 

“Lance, what are you doing here? Did you get a scholarship too?” There was a sly grin on his face.

 

“Well you see. That’s a long story, ask me again later and I’ll tell you in depth and exquisite detail of this… _calamity_.” Hunk raised an eyebrow. How would it be a long story? Lance had been to one of those pre-requisite schools, according to him. Not the ‘academies’ in the school, but an affiliate from Florida. He was also kind of suspicious of the over-dramatics, but this was Lance he was talking about. Lance tapped his foot impatiently as he looked around the room, surveying its people and taking them in. He looked back to Hunk. “Do you know what time the ceremony starts at?”

 

“Uh… I think they said 11? But my phone says it’s way past 11 already.” He looked down to his phone once more, wondering why it was taking so long. Were not all of the scholar kids collected? Lance frowned as he rubbed his chin and furrowed his brows.

 

“My friend texted me, he said they’re having trouble getting the kids into the auditorium and sound problems.” A kid from one of the other cliques replied to them.

 

“Thanks.” Hunk smiled and in return the cadet smiled, giving a small ‘no problem’.

 

The door opened once more and slammed shut, gathering the entire group’s attention. The door slammer was a boy with long black hair and dark blue eyes. He was in standard newbie orange. Hunk heard the unholy groan Lance bestowed upon the world.

 

“Great he’s here too... “

 

“Do you two know each other?” He asked cautiously. A groan wasn’t a good sign. Hunk looked back to the cadet. He too secluded himself to the corner of the room, checking at his phone, never once making eye contact with anyone.

 

“Yeah, his name’s _Keith_.” He emphasized, as if the name was a bitter topic to talk about. “Hot shot at the flight academy I was at for the two months he was there.” There was an inconsistency in Lance’s story.

 

“But I thought you were the ‘hot shot’.” Lance sighed as he slowly and delicately crossed his arms.

 

“Only in theory.” He spoke bitterly. He perked up immediately, taking this chance to change the subject. He grinned to Hunk as he laced their arms together. “So how was Morocco? Any cute girls?” He wiggled his eyebrows.

 

“I snapped lots of neat pics I could show you later? Also no Lance, I was with my cousins the entire time.” Lance pouted, but his mood was not deterred in the slightest. “How about you?”

 

“Cuba was fun. Seeing my family again was nice, I hadn’t seen them in a while. They so want to meet you like, dude. It’s hardcore. I almost died of embarrassment five times. Anyway, I’m just. Dude I can’t believe it’s you in the flesh, without horrible static. I’m not dreaming right? This is 100% really happening.” He still sounded in awe. Hunk pinched his arm. He recoiled with an indignant ‘ow!’ and rubbed his arm in an over-exaggerated wounded matter.

 

“Yup it’s real.” Hunk was snorting at the glares his PSO was sending him.

 

“Not cool.”  Before the rebuttal ever came, the PDA system graced their ears, telling them the ceremony would be beginning shortly. Sound problems seemed to have been resolved. The door opened once more and a professor called upon them to follow her. The students huddled together alone or in groups as they marched their way through the halls. Some were nervous while others chatted away aimlessly. Others like Lance and Hunk were the in between.

 

“Alright so let me guess. Your scholarship is either Mechanical Engineering or Electrical Engineering.” Lance mused.

 

“Mechanical.” Hunk chimed. There was a satisfactory hiss of a yes from Lance as he pulled back his arm excitedly. He looked over to Lance who was grinning wildly. Hunk barely had to even ponder about his scholarship “Astrophysics.”

 

“I probably would have gotten really mad had you guessed it wrong.”

 

“Same.” They both began to snicker to one another, trying to catch their breaths. It was really like something out of a dream. Being able to joke to one another in person. Lance actually going through with his promises of hugs, which he did promise later. He was a surprisingly tactile person. Hunk kind of really liked that about him, because he too was touchy feely, and he had been in such a lack. He was kind of glad now for all of those interview mishaps.

 

The line stopped abruptly. The teacher whispered something as she moved them along through a tiny door. As the third person passed through, clapping began to overload the room. Or auditorium to be precise. It was an auditorium. Filled to the brim with new students young and old. As Lance passed before him, Hunk began to felt himself clam up. Public speaking, all eyes on him, it was almost like a death sentence.

 

The teacher called on him to move along, but his feet were frozen. He couldn’t move. Despite his want to move and get this hell over with, _he couldn’t move_. When Lance realized Hunk hadn’t followed right after him, he turned around to see what had been the holdup. Stage fright had been the holdup. He smiled fondly, despite the exasperation he emitted.

 

“Come on, it’ll be over before you even realize.” Lance reached for Hunk’s hand and walked him along to one of the vacant seats right beside him. They sat down, the lights from the stage overwhelmingly bright. You could see the dust in the air, but the distinctive features of faces in the crowd were a blur.

 

“You sure about that?” Hunk whispered back anxiously.

 

“It’ll be easy peasy. Trust me, it’s a gift you can’t see their faces.” Lance hushed confidently in return. He hadn’t done shows for years to not know the tricks to get over stage fright.

 

“If you say so.” The ever skeptic reply.

 

It was in fact over before he even realized. There weren’t many introductions, they stood when they’re name was called, noting the high emphasis they put on Lance’s name as they stared to him nervously -- he’d really have to ask him on that story later -- moving on to get the important information out. Rooms were to be assigned, schedules to be followed, tardiness inexcusable, curfew mandatory. Anything you’d expect from a military academy, because despite all of the praise and want for preparation for space travel, the Garrison was still military. Or had some form of attachment to it.

 

They rose from their seats as the representative for this year came to give their speech. It was none other than Keith who displayed the attitude of someone who wanted to be anywhere other than on stage in front of thousands. He gave curt words, under layered with venom none would normally pick up. He turned to the professor and saluted before returning to his seat, glad to have this over with. One last word, where they would find the list for roommates. With that they were dismissed.

 

They waited for the auditorium before they went on they’re way, chatting about things they’d been meaning to catch up on.

 

“Was it just me or did Keith, his name’s Keith right? Did Keith sound kind of bitter? Like black coffee bitter, he kind of sounded bitter to me.” Hunk rattled on, it still bothered him. Who would accept an offer for a place they didn’t want to be? Was it kind of like people who wanted to go into medical? The program unfavourable, but the end goal so satisfying?

 

“Forget that guy. Billy Ray Cyrus can wait another day.” Lance said dismissively.

 

“What does heartthrob sensation Billy Ray Cyrus have to do with Keith?” the mechanic scholar lead on sarcastically.

 

“Huunnk.” Lance groaned. Hunk patted him on the back encouragingly. It still did not improve Lance’s mood.

 

By the time they turned the corner, there were still a few stragglers left at the bulletin board for dorms. Hunk perused down the list of ‘G’, but it wasn’t long, he was at the top. He traced his fingers down the dotted line to his roommate and dorm number. The first obvious thing was that it wasn’t Lance. He looked to his left, and the playful annoyance from before had been replaced with frustrated incredulity. His head was in his hands, over his face, as if he was just done with it all.

 

“...You alright there?” He eyed the flight cadet with precaution, trying to see as to where he was staring.

 

“I’m not on the list.”

 

“What?” Hunk pushed him over, going down the ‘S’ list. He was right. There was no one named ‘Lance Sanchez McClain’ on the list.

 

“What about you? Are you up there?” Lance eyed the ‘G’ section, and quickly spotted Hunk’s name. Well that was it. He grabbed onto Hunk’s hand and dragged him as best as he could down the hall. There was fire in his steps, and Hunk still had yet to understand the story as to _why_.

 

“Lance, hey wait. Buddy, _slow down_.” He got Lance to stop and whip around. “Okay, take some deep breathes and explain to me why you’re dragging me around like Raggedy Andy.” Lance inhaled and then exhaled.

 

“Alright SO,” this was already starting off well, “You know how I legally changed my name like, two years ago right?” Hunk nodded. He remembered they onslaught of typos Lance had sent him screaming about this event. “Okay. At the flight school I was at, run by the Garrison by the way, they never changed the name on my file. So my flight academy file was in my name, but not the Garrison one. I sent my application with my actual name and the file they sent over had my deadname. I ended up bumping into one of my old flight teachers while at the airport and they asked if I had gotten the scholarship they had recommended me for at the Garrison. I, obviously confused, ask them what the heckie they’re talking about. You still following?” Hunk nodded again, dreading the oncoming details.

 

“My teacher was confused, because ‘You should have gotten your acceptance letter already?’ Well I didn’t, or else I wouldn’t be confused. They end up phoning the Garrison for me, by this time my mom and the rest of the family have crowded around us wondering what’s going on. The Garrison pick up and my teacher starts asking them why they hadn’t sent out my acceptance letter yet. They asked for the student name and my teacher gave mine, they said there was no student file under that name. Now the entire family’s really confused, and my mom’s starting to get annoyed. My teacher then asks them to pull up Hollywood Flight academy files. Unsurprisingly my name was there.” Hunk was shaking his head. It went from bad to terrible in seconds.

 

“Oh there’s more. Now my mom. _My mom_. The curse words I heard that day were unforgettable. She threatened a lawsuit.”

 

“But you guys can’t afford a lawsuit?” Hunk furrowed his eyebrows. Lance told him to hush down. He leaned in to whisper into his ear.

 

“They don’t know that.” Hunk’s eyes widened.

 

“Holy shit.”

 

“Um hm. When they realized their screw up, they ended up trying to compromise without having to face any sort of legal battle, even if the legal battle would have been hypothetical. With… well with Takashi Shirogane they had good publicity, and with something like this popping up they could of ruined their reputation. Social media is scary.” There was a pause. “So they decided to pay off any expenses. Hormone therapy, top surgery, you name it. My mom was crying so much after my teacher hung up. We didn’t know how we were gonna be able to pay off the hormone therapy and top surgery seemed like a dream. But here we are, 3 weeks after surgery.”

 

“That kind of really sucks, but Lance, dude. I’m super happy for you!” And another bear hug.

 

“Still in pain! _Still. In. pain_!” He gasped out.

 

“Oh right. Sorry.” Hunk’s voice was quiet as he placed his best friend down.

 

The rest of the walk to the teacher’s office was quiet, save for some small bumps here and there. Why would someone place a blue and yellow trashcan in the middle of the hall? What were they in, a sitcom? After the few hiccups they finally found the office. They looked to one another, wondering if they were ready. Lance swallowed the saliva forming in his throat and knocked firmly. Not a moment sooner the door swished open and the professor from the ceremony gave them surprised look.

 

“Cadet McClain, Cadet Garrett, what brings you both to the teacher’s office?” A teacher in the back visibly shrunk in the background. The professor gave a side glance to the back, their lips forming a flat line.

 

“My name’s not on the list.” Lance’s reply was flat, taking the immediate attention to himself.

 

“Pardon?” The professor seemed baffled.

 

“My name is not on the dorm list.” The professor slowly turned their head back into the room where the teacher who had sunk themselves into obliviousness had swivelled around in their chair, attempting to ignore the situation.

 

“Professor Mayer?” Their voice was sickly sweet, stressed with controlled frustration. Shit was about to go down.

 

“Yes Professor Dragon?”

 

“It seems your forgetfulness proceeds you.” The tone was sour. Professor Dragon turned their head back to the two students. “Our deepest apologizes for this inconvenience.” There was the sound of a door opening and closing within the office. All peered a glance to notice another teacher conversing with Professor Mayer. The two instructors had hushed whispers as they glanced back and forth to the small group at the student door. Suddenly the new Professor stood up and made his way over to Professor Dragon. He leaned in to whisper to Professor’s ear. They nodded in acquisition.

 

“A student had to withdraw from the program, your room will be M block 278. We'll make sure you're stuff gets there before curfew tonight. Please enjoy the rest of your day to accustom yourself to the new living environment.” With that the instructor left them in the solitude of the hall. They looked to one another, that had been far easier than expected.

 

“We should probably go before something happens to change their mind.” A hand landed on Lance’s shoulder, breaking his train of thought. He looked up to see what was the commotion and nodded his head. He stuffed his hands in his pockets, marching back to first year dorms. The walk back was low lit, shadows masking the corners of the halls.

 

“Kind of feels like a horror movie,” Hunk let his thoughts grace airwaves. Lance looked around.

 

“Spoopy.” Lance’s feet kicked at the floor, a frown on his face. In return Hunk frowned. A thought arose and with his tongue sticking out slightly in determined concentration he executed his plan. Would it work, he had yet to know, but he hoped it would lighten the mood. He pounced as he tickled Lance’s sides with an exclamation of ‘boo!’

 

A yelp could have been heard across campus. Lance quickly attempted to regain his composure, his left leg curled into his chest and right hand up, staring Hunk up and down with a shocked and processing stare.

 

“What the fudge, dude? Bro code much?” Despite the betrayal laughter laced his voice. Hunk’s snorting was infectious.

 

“Fudge? Bro code?” He was still laughing. Lance glared.

 

“You know what I mean.”

 

“Nope. I don't think I do.” He was having trouble controlling his laughter as he smiled with faked innocence. Lance’s face fell before he hung his head. He exhaled and smiled.

 

“Let's just head back to the dorms already. What's your room number?” It wasn't long before Hunk remembered the number’s he was looking for. While Lance’s words spoke of water under the bridge, Lance’s facial features spoke of a vendetta that held no bounds.

 

“O Block 169.” The M block and the O block were opposite of one another meaning they had no need to separate at the fork in the road. Identical metal doors filled the halls, the only differentials being the letters. They continued down the hall, intruding upon laughter and chatter of other cadets. There was a sort of awkwardness that settled and Hunk broke it in the way he knew best: silly faces. Thus eliciting the silly faces match off as they continued their way down the hall.

 

It branched off once more, kids going to and fro rooms, carrying heavy boxes along the halls. Some of the cadets had already changed out of uniform. It was no longer class hours. Though on closer inspection a lot of them were in pajamas. They looked up to the M block and the O block sign.

 

“I guess this is where we part ways huh?” Hunk looked over to Lance.

 

“Yeah.” He nodded.

 

“If you get lonely skype me.” Lance grinned.

 

“You're like one hall down.” Hunk replied amiably sarcastically, laughter seeping through his voice.

 

“Skype me or fight me.”

 

When Hunk found his room, it was empty save for his things. There had seemed to have been some form of life that had been here before him. He could tell by the slight ruffles in the bedding and the weight of boxes embedded into the carpet. Who ever had been here had switched rooms before he had been met them. Well it made things easier for him, despite the small, very small hurtful pang his heart felt. Almost like disappointment. Almost.

 

He began to unpack the clothing first. Getting that out of the way was a little more important. Then maybe he could scope out the cafeteria and see if he could snag some food. Maybe even build a mini fridge to keep his own personal reserve. Sometimes going out for a midnight snack were not with the risks.

 

He had already begun to finish unpacking his clothes when there was a knock at the door. He raised an eyebrow. Had Lance gotten so bored already he ditched his roommate to crash with Hunk? When he got to the door, he had been right about it being Lance. The reason as to his being, not so much.

 

“So my roommate ditched me.” Was how he started off before walking into the room and claiming refuge on the bed beside Hunk’s own. His new bed. As it would turn out Hunk’s roommate had been friends with Lance’s. They had heard from a teacher that Lance room had only one person, i.e., that the original roommate had withdrew from the program. Hunk’s roommate transferred into Lance’s old room, before Lance had even know. It had been rather awkward when he had walked into the room.

 

There was even more of a communications fiasco among the instructors. By the time he had found one, all of his stuff had already been moved to M block 278, despite it no longer being where he had to stay. With the help of the dorm advisor and a few nice students who had taken pity on Lance, they were able to move his stuff over to O block 169, which was meant to be his new room. Which Lance remembered was Hunk’s room.

 

In short Lance and Hunk, after a bizarre reel of circumstantial events, were now roommates.

 

In short Hunk realized he was really, really screwed. The first few months were easy to say the least. Adjusting to life from Internet friends to roommates wasn’t as hard as he would have expected, but there were still things to took him by surprise. Well when he thought about it not really, but still. Surprise.

 

While from what he remembered of Lance’s room, it had been a mess. In person, it was so much of a mess, it somehow found itself to be organized. The divide between their two sides had been clear for a week. Than Hunk learned the word personal space had been omitted from Lance’s vocabulary. He didn’t. The weight of another person laying on him helped anchor his anxieties.

 

Lance was also pretty accommodative. When Hunk was so stressed out he could no longer find words, Lance started messaging him. Even if they were 2 feet from each other, if Hunk was not up to speaking, they would be messaging. Life as roommates, socially, was really easy.

 

Academically it was a mess. With being in two very distinctively different programs came very distinctively different classes. Which meant they would barely share any classes. They only happened to share three. Three because it would be a cold day in hell before Hunk would no longer count lunch as a class -- it was time during the school hours, so why would it not be a class. They shared gym -- bonds made through sweat, blood and possible broken bones were forged in those confined walls -- and they shared basic science.

 

So sometimes getting homework done was a whole new hassle on its own. Because they were both terrible. So terrible to keep to their own and not peer over each other’s work. Lance was genuinely curious about what type of work Hunk did and found himself peering over his shoulder. Hunk on the other hand heard some of the frustrated groans from Lance and found himself going through his homework and correcting the errors. While the help _was_ appreciated, Lance would have preferred him just helping him like the tutoring they used to do than Hunk going through his homework without telling him.

 

As to why he was screwed? Hunk had started to fall really, really, _really_ hard for Lance. It wasn’t the first time this sort of things happen. Anyone showing him any sort of affection had immediate crush development. Normally though these things would pass. The difference was that he had already had this with Lance. Four years ago. Which meant this was the real deal. Which meant he was so totally going to do something weird. Not like he already didn’t do really goofy things, it was just how he copes.

 

Like how he would purposefully glitch the game continuously because it made Lance laugh, or how he would make silly voices while they watched horror movies. Mocking the oh so stereotypical characters in their paths. Or how they would just scream when they feel it in their gut a character is about to die and pray that they don’t for the sake of proving them wrong. Laughter, snorts and giggles were often accompanied. It was just their thing. A de-stress zone of sorts.

 

He also had to say Lance’s touchy feely nature wasn’t in his favour. He loved the casual leaning and the hugging, but waking up to Lance crawling into his bed at two am was like being woken up in the middle of the night by a possessed child hovering above your bed. Lance still found himself apologizing about it months later, despite still crawling into bed with him. Their friendship strived to even further heights, but Hunk couldn’t help the butterflies in his stomach whenever Lance smiled, or jokingly complained. It didn’t even bother him much that Lance found confidence on confiding about his exes. It was almost routine. He’d gush about the new person, then a soulmark would appear on the partner and Lance would start to feel guilty because he knew the routine. He’d hope maybe once it would be different, but the routine was, well, a routine. A few weeks would pass, still no soulmark, he’d feel terrible about it, attempt to mask it and the relationship would fall apart. Because of this he would be known as a player.

 

 _“The woes, tragedies and times of Lance Charles Sanchez McClain_.” Lance swooned dramatically as he placed the back of his hand on his head and leaned against a wall, clutching his heart.

 

Hunk had to cover his mouth as to not make the snort as obvious as it had been. Lance grinned as he wiggled his eyebrows and smirked.

 

Their second year rolled around rather quickly. The previous year there had been some placements. Hunk found himself once again at the top of his class when it came to engineering. It earned him a place in the space division, despite his complaints advising against it. They brushed it off as nonsense. He would be taking a simulator test for placement. They held high expectations for him. Lo and behold he disappointed. Motion sickness; his Achilles heel.

 

Still, even with the poor practical, he found himself in the space division instead of his want for terrestrial.

 

Lance found himself no better off. ‘Only in theory’ was an apt description of Lance’s grades. While one of the top students, his practical skills were what brought him down. He lived to fly, loved to fly and desperately wanted to be fighter class. Yet all the hard work he had put in, he found himself as second fiddle. Cargo class. His dream was gone in the blink of an eye.

 

So in short summer break had been bittersweet.

 

When the second year came around, some things came as a surprise. For one: new kid.

 

New Kid was in fact named Pidge Gunderson. New kid Pidge Gunderson was also not very talkative, and hard to find outside of class hours later in the evening. Still, they did their work, so it wasn’t much trouble. Communication would have been nice, so the first few weeks were rather, to put it nicely, _strained_. You’d think as a communications officer, communicating would have been second nature. It wasn’t. Oh boy it wasn’t.

 

When they were finally, _finally_ able to break some sort of ice with them, Pidge went from good to great. Hunk and Pidge had found some form of common interest and could be found talking away about it during their lunch with Lance trying so hard to follow, but whimsically confused. If there was one way Pidge and Lance got along, it was through pure salt. When Pidge and Hunk weren’t conversing about mathematical equations that went over Lance’s head, Lance and Pidge could be found enjoying their mutually shared saltiness.  

 

So waking up one morning to Lance pacing around the room screaming at seven in the morning, which was quite a surprise since Lance and seven am sounded like an oxymoron, was a rather rude awakening.

 

“Lance… could you keep it down? It’s Sunday. You shouldn’t even be awake on a Sunday that’s illegal.” He covered his head with the pillow, hoping for something, anything, to let him go back to sleep.

 

“Hunk, oh my gosh Hunk holy crap Hunk, holy shit Hunk.” The swearing continued on. The woke Hunk immediately. Lance, _swearing_? It was more likely than he thought.

 

“Lance, you okay?” He put the pillow down and removed the cover, getting out of bed and walking over to his pacing friend. Lance turned around immediately, his hands in front of his face bawling and outstretching with familiar nervous ease. The yellow soulmark was obvious to his eyes, but on his left wrist was something new. Hunk’s eyes widened, and suddenly he was on his knees, clutching his stomach in laughter. Lance stood in still before noting where Hunk had been looking.

 

“DUDE IT’S NOT FUNNY.”

 

“Your soulmark.” He was gasping for air in between the laughs. “Is Pepe the frog.”

 

“DO.  NOT.” Lance grabbed his left wrist, bringing it to his chest, attempting to hide the shame. Hunk feigned an innocent smile that translated more as devious.

 

“My Lance is growing up so fast.” He sniffled and wiped away fake tears. Lance looked towards the ground, his left wrist still hidden, but his right hand reaching for his the pajama pants at his thigh.

 

“Just get dressed Pidge wants us to meet him at the library. Says that ‘my lack of knowledge in technology comprehension and mechanical repair is deplorable for someone who has aspirations to become a pilot, no less a fighter class’.” Lance rehearsed as he imitated Pidge, the moving of the imaginary glasses and all. Hunk let out one last laugh before finding his clothes and the ribbon he had left on nightstand the day before.

 

“I’m just gonna take a shower first. Uh, meet you in the cafeteria?” Lance nodded from where he sat on the bed tying up his shoes. He tapped them as he jumped to his feet. Despite it still being seven am on a Sunday, Lance felt like he was on a coffee high.

 

“If they have eggs, bacon and pancakes I’ll save you some.” Lance gave him his trademark smirk as he winked and fingered gunned out the door. Leaving Hunk alone in silence.

 

The bathroom was small, standard grade showers, a toilet, a mirror and a sink. All of which constantly needed repairs. He sighed out the fatigue, but it slowly formed into a yawn. He pulled off his shirt and flipped on the lights. He closed them tightly, the light irritating oh so early in the morning. His head deviated to the left, and that’s when he had noted it.

 

 _It_. The horrid green abomination on his shoulder. He thought back to when Lance and he had first gotten their soulmarks. What cruel irony. What a horrid abomination. God Lance was going to ruin him. Another platonic, which wasn’t so bad. But who exactly did he find himself associated with _Shrek_.

 

The shower was quick, a new shower record. Dumping the score of Lance’s 2 minutes into second with Hunk’s new record of a minute and 56 seconds. He towel dried himself down and wrapping it around his waist walked into the room. He grabbed the erasable marker and wrote his time down, adding a tiny little doodle for triumphant purposes.

 

It was pulling on his pants that he noted a blue blob on his right thigh. Upon closer inspection the blue blob on his thigh was in fact the same mark as he found on the back of his right hand. And he groaned. Here came the one-sided soulmark. The one’s his parents talked about so briefly, the ones Lance talked about _constantly_. A few weeks and it would pass. All he had to do was wear longer boxers and constantly have Lance flanked to his right. Indefinitely.

 

No that was just ridiculous. That wasn’t going to work, but the fact remained. He wasn’t going to know it wasn’t going to work unless he tried it.

 

Really he wasn’t sure what was worse. Shrek as a soulmark or the soulmark he shared with Lance going all romantic on him. Here’s to hoping.

 

By the time he arrived to the cafeteria, a ghost town at the elusive hour of 7:30am, it was only filled by the early birds and a tower of books. To be more precise books belonging to the elusive third member of their team. He raised his hand to wave, but halted, noticing the dead look in their eyes. His walk over was cautious, the books gracefully flung to the side. Lance held his head in his hands, forehead touching the table. Pidge’s hands rested on their knees, their expression between a frown and a snicker. The atmosphere screamed disappointment.  

 

“Did I miss a zombie apocalypse or something?” the words rose a reaction from the two. Pidge’s eyes laid on Hunk before they reached for the nearest book in front of them and returned to their discarded breakfast. Lance’s head turned slightly and he lazily waved one hand.

 

“Just another Nostradamus.” Hunk raised an eyebrow as he slid himself across from the two. The atmosphere now more awkward than anything previously. Lance pushed the plate he had saved for Hunk, the food still warm. He than slid over a glass of orange juice.

 

“No pulp.” Lance knew him too well. He eyed the books in front of Pidge and grabbed one from the pile, despite the look of annoyance Pidge sent him. He only grinned sheepishly in response. Lance stretched his arms as he laid his head flat on the cool surface.

 

“So, didya fund-” Hunk swallowed the food in his mouth as the two looked up to the one who had gathered their attention. “Did you find your Pepe?” Pidge immediately returned to reading their book, suspiciously avoiding any form of eye contact. Lance groaned and rolled his eyes. He looked back between the two. The light went off.

 

“Oh my god.” While surprised, he sounded so amused, like this was the most hilarious development since Lance told him about Mothman.

 

“Just rub it in.” muttered Lance flatly.

 

“ _Saltmates_.” Lance eyed him curiously before robbing the book Lance had dropped. It was something on software development and coding. Basically a foreign language. Full of numbers. Not for him. “Oh this is gold.”

 

“What’s more gold is whoever has Shrek.” Lance said offhandedly. He side-glanced his friend, who froze. His eyes widened and his grin was reminiscent of the Cheshire Cat. He slammed the book down onto the table, eliciting stares from everyone around them, causing Pidge to jump in fright. “ _Oh this is gold_.”

 

“Lance I’m not sure what you’re tal-” he was cut off by Lance grabbed his hands eagerly.

 

“Shoulder, now.” There was so much glee in his eyes. Hunk glanced over to Pidge, but they too were somewhat curious. Seeing the fearfully confused look, Pidge took pity upon their mechanic. They sighed as they put their book down and used it as support for their elbow, resting their hand on their face.

 

“I found two soulmarks this morning. As you can see,” they raised their left wrist, “a blue pepe the frog.” They pulled up the sleeve, revealing the sickeningly yellow Shrek on their shoulder, the exact same position as Hunk’s. “And… the abomination.”

 

 _“Somebody once told me-”_ began to jingle oh so iconically. Pidge rolled their eyes, before snatching the phone out of Lance’s hand turning off the music.

 

“Hey!” A few more seconds and the phone was back in his hands. He sent a glare to Pidge before pocketing his phone once again. Pidge ignored Lance in favour of turning their attention to Hunk.

 

“So?” Both of their attention was on the mechanic. He gingerly rolled up his left sleeve. The green monstrosity in plain sight. Lance’s pouted turned around into an awed grin. Pidge eyed it and curtly returned to their book, but there was a pull of a smile on their lips.

 

“Hey, Hunk, hey now.” Called out Lance from across the table.

 

“Yes Lance?” He knew exactly what was going to come.

 

“You’re a rockstar.” He inhaled and let his head meet his hand. An eventful morning it was indeed.

 

Later that day, while Pidge and Lance were goofing off in the library, Cadet Kogane was reported to have been kicked from the program, pushing Lance up to fighter class.

 

A week had gone by and the soulmark on his thigh persisted. Two weeks, it was still there. A close encounter week three thanks to Pidge, who seemed to have started to be in the know. Finally a month had passed, and yet his mark was _still there_.

 

Was this something cruel? Was this the rumoured eternal one-sided soulmark?

 

It was a late Friday night. Hunk found himself curled up reading one of his textbooks, there was going to be an exam on Monday. He found himself reading the passages over and over and over again, trying to retain the information that escaped him so late at night. He closed his eyes and put the book on the nightstand.

 

“Hey, uh, Hunk. I gotta ask you something.” He heard Lance’s voice call out. Hunk rolled over in his bed, opening his eyes to watch his PSO from across the cluttered barricade.

 

“If you want to crash in my bed with me Lance, you don’t need to ask. It hasn’t stopped you before.” He replied with a tired voice.

 

“Thanks, but it’s not that.” Hunk rose his head, curious. There was a silence that settled between them. Lance kicked his legs over the side of the bed. He reached for his pajama pants and gingerly began to pull them up past the thigh. “So uh. Yeah. I’ve uh… kind of had this for a while now.” Hunk felt himself go slack jawed. “Uh, Hunk, Earth to Hunk? Oh Houston I hope we don’t have a problem.” He waved his hand quickly up and down to see if he could gain the other’s attention.

 

“What- Um.. Sorry just. Wow I’m. Oh my god. I can-” He began to laugh. Avoidance formed irony. He couldn’t believe. Lance looked to him strangely, hurt even, ever so briefly. Hunk ran a hand through his hair and noting Lance’s expression shook his hands. He pulled up his pajama pants, revealing the identical mark, but instead of yellow it was blue. The surprise turned to relief, to bright smiling relief.

 

“Do you want… do you want to spoon and sleep in my bed tonight?” Hunk rubbed the back of his head. There was a wicked grin on Lance’s face.

 

“You don’t need to ask.”

 

The night was rather quaint, at first Hunk had found himself being the big spoon until Lance did a 180 and declared himself the big spoon for the rest of the night. Which was nice. Hunk rather enjoyed being held, the sound of Lance’s thumping heart was soothing music to his ears. The upgrade in relationship status didn’t actually change much to their currently existing relationship, but Pidge must of had an inkling of a feeling of the upgrade when they met on the weekend to study and they raised their eyebrow to the excessive amount of PDA. A tad more than the usual.

 

They’d spend the weekend watching horrible B movies, sneaking snacks and trying to kiss. Trying being the operative word seeing as they were both too much of flustered laughing messes to even do anything. Movie night out more like dying of laughter night out. Inappropriate music playing, funny lines, awkward moments. Or just, the wrong movie to even kiss to. The credits had begun to roll, Hunk sighed. He looked over to Lance who was already as out as a light. He smiled fondly. He leaned over to kiss his forehead, but felt a warm sensation on his lips. Lance pulled away with a sleepy grin.

“Gotcha Hunkules.” He hummed sleepily as he curled into him, limbs sprawled out like the loveable mess he was.

 

The weekend was coming to term, the week beginning once again, and what awaited them was going to be out of this world.

**Author's Note:**

> Probs gonna make a second chapter with the other soulmate shenanigans B) let's just say it's a platonic mess and Pidge cannot get enough memes. So many platonic shenanigans. _So many._


End file.
